


Directions

by adafrog



Series: Directions!Verse [1]
Category: Chronicles of Riddick (2004)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-06
Updated: 2011-12-06
Packaged: 2017-10-27 00:45:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,422
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/289699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adafrog/pseuds/adafrog
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Riddick takes over control of the Necromonger armada he takes things in an unexpected direction.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Directions

Title: Directions  
Author: Adafrog  
Fandom: TCOR  
Pairing: Riddick/Vaako  
Rating: PG-13  
Length: 17,396 words  
Warnings: some violence  
Disclaimer: I don’t own it.  
Summary: When Riddick takes over control of the Necromonger armada he takes things in an unexpected direction.

 

Riddick looked up from his seat to see hundreds of Necros on their knees before him. Nothing he would have wanted before. Nothing he wanted now. He looked briefly at Kyra’s body, and reminded himself of his options - none. Aereon was a tricky one; he had to admire her for getting him where she wanted him.

He rose, carefully inspecting the lead Necros as he walked around their still kneeling forms. He would have to know much more about them individually and as a people before he’d even think of working with them. Better to throw them all out and get new if they start pushing. Especially this one, he thought as he circled Vaako once, then tapped on his armor. He was about to order them up, when he felt a curious sensation and rubbed his chest.

“Get up,” he ordered, then moved back to the throne. He watched as they started to rise, slowly at first, then faster as those farther back realized what was happening. Finally, when they had all risen, he pointed to the three obvious military leaders, “you stay,” then looked over the rest present, “leave.”

As the main group of Necros left, two women slowly made their way toward the front of the room. The obvious one, Aereon, moved gracefully toward him, finally taking up a position on his left. The other one was sliding along in the shadows, slowing coming closer; obviously unaware she was being monitored.

Ignoring the woman for the moment, Riddick turned to the men. He needed to learn a lot of things in the next few days, but for now the status of the planet below would be enough. Damn that holy man for making him care.

Turning first to the two he didn’t recognize, Riddick studied them, and then asked, “names?” After hearing the quickly reported ‘Toal’ and ‘Scales’, and ‘Lord Vaako’, he looked at Vaako. “You have a fancy name to go with your fancy new armor.” Riddick casually reached over to touch the gold adornments on Vaako’s armor, carefully watching him the whole time.

Vaako kept the gaze a few moments, “I am your First Among Commanders,” then bowed his head, “if you wish it to remain so.”

“We’ll see,” Riddick thoughtfully answered. “For now, though, I wanna know what’s going on below us.” Seeing their confusion, he added, “on the planet.”

“Yes, my lord,” Toal replied. “We have not yet implemented the Final Protocol. If you would like, I can have them…”

“No,” Riddick interrupted. “We’re not blowing the planet up. I want you to remove all our shit from down there, including those damn planet killers.” Surprised, but wary at the apparently easy acquiescence, he dismissed them. “That’s it for now. I’ll be expecting an update in the next few hours.”

Riddick watched the commanders leave, then smiled. “Ladies…” he drawled, nodding briefly at Aereon, then looking at the one still in the shadows. “I can see you perfectly. You might as well come out.” He crooked his finger at her, waving her forward. “Still beautiful,” he murmured, sniffing the air, “Miss…”

“Lady Vaako,” she supplied, bowing as she introduced herself.

“Aah,” Riddick mused, “then you would currently be attached to Lord Vaako. That right?”

“Yes, my lord,” she sweetly replied, not so surreptitiously looking him over. “As long or as short a time as you wish it. You may take anyone you desire.”

He snickered, shaking his head. “That’s interesting, but not quite what I’m looking for.” Narrowing his eyes, he watched until he was sure she understood his disinterest. “But I am in need of an advisor, of sorts. For certain things,” he added, not wanting her to feel too empowered.

“I would be honored, my lord,” she gave a small smile, “to help you with whatever you wish.”

“Excellent.” Riddick gestured toward the long hallway opposite. “If you would show me to my new quarters, we can discuss the details.”

 

“So these are my new digs,” Riddick mused, walking into the room after Lady Vaako. “Still would have gone a different way,” he noted, looking at the dark décor so similar to the Necropolis.

She gracefully turned, giving him the same inscrutable look she gave him the first time she was his guide. “You may, of course, change it to something more your taste.”

“Yeah,” he replied, walking over to a nearby table, and sitting down. “Ladies,” he offered, gesturing at the other empty seats. “Let’s get down to business.” Riddick waited until they had seated themselves, then faced Lady Vaako. “You want power. I want Lord Vaako.”

“You want Lord Vaako,” she repeated, trying to cover her surprise, then sweetly added, “he is yours whenever you wish it, my lord.”

“I want him all to myself,” he bluntly stated. “You divorce him, or whatever you guys do here. In return, I will take you as one of my advisors.”

“And if I don’t,” she asked, carefully watching his reaction.

Riddick leaned back in his chair, relaxed. “Nothing will change. Although I can’t guarantee he won’t be tempted to stray,” he finished smugly.

She was quiet for some time, and then nodded to herself. “I want to keep my title. Not,” she quickly added, seeing Riddick starting to frown, “the name. I’ll take my old name back.”

“Is that all?” he asked, waiting to see what she’d say next.

“Yes my lord. Thank you.” She gracefully nodded her head.

“Good,” he said smugly, then gestured to the door. “I’ll let you know when you’re needed, Lady…”

“Grey,” she said, smoothly rising from the table. She bowed once to Riddick, nodded at Aereon, then left his chambers.

“I’m surprised you stayed quiet for all of that,” Riddick noted, slowly turning to face her.

“I was interested in what you had planned for her.” She studied him more closely, “I’m glad you don’t want her, but must say I’m at a loss for why you would want Lord Vaako. He would seem to be your closest rival.”

Riddick smiled mysteriously. “You know what they say about keeping your enemies close.”

Aereon glared at him.

He shrugged, not sorry for his jest. “One of the perks of being me is that I can tell, when I’m within a few feet of someone, if they’re Furyan.”

“Now who would have though that? All this time, Lord Marshall Zhylaw had a Furyan right next to him.”

“Two so far. The ex-purifier was also Furyan.”

Aereon sat back, clearly intrigued. “That is even more interesting. I wonder how many more there are.”

“That’s what I wanna know.”

 

“Excuse me, Lord Vaako,” the servant said hesitantly, interrupting Vaako’s discussion with the other two commanders. He waited patiently until he had gotten the needed attention, and then continued, “Lord Marshall Riddick requires your presence.”

“Just me?” Vaako asked, ignoring the concerned glances of his cohorts.

“I’m sorry, just you, my lord.” The servant edged toward the doorway, hoping Lord Vaako would follow.

“By all means, then, let’s go,” he gestured to the servant, following in his wake.

 

Riddick sat back, arms crossed as the servant announced his visitor, and the door opened. “Lord Vaako,” he drawled as the man in question walked in. “Have a seat,” he gestured to the one opposite him.

Vaako slowly walked in, carefully surveying the room, noting the same table and chairs in the middle with three doors leading off. He knew one door lead to a refresher, but had never been through the other two, guessing they lead to the Lord Marshall’s inner sanctum. The one servant was new; usually there were three of four standing around. As he reached the chair, and sat down, he focused completely on Riddick, trying –and failing- to read him.

“You hungry? I was just about to have some dinner.” Riddick called the servant forward, and let him lay out the food. He started eating, gesturing at Vaako when he didn’t follow suit. “The cook assures me it’s better than that crap they serve you in the mess. Eat it while you can.”

Still wary, but not wanting to anger Riddick, Vaako slowly started to eat. He watched as Riddick ate, seemingly putting his whole concentration into it and not him.

Finally, Riddick put down his fork, and turned the full might of his gaze on Vaako. “I had a talk with your wife today.”

Vaako suddenly felt very uncomfortable, hoping Riddick wasn’t going to take his part in trying to kill Lord Zhylaw personally.

Smirking, he continued, “we had a lovely chat.”

He started hoping that maybe Riddick just wanted his wife, and not his neck. Lady Vaako wouldn’t have said any untruths, but the truth can be twisted.

“And made a deal.” Riddick sat back, crossing his arms, and watching Vaako squirm.

Even more uncomfortable, Vaako took deep breaths, wondering what was making it so hard.

Finally taking pity on Vaako, Riddick let him in on the plan. “She’s going to be a good advisor – one of my advisors. Lady Grey now.” He let that sink in.

“To divorce, it must be both parties…”

“Or per the Lord Marshall, apparently,” Riddick interrupted, enjoying the confusion.

“So if you didn’t want her, then you wanted…me,” he mumbled. Then, sharply looking up at Riddick, he snapped, “I am not some thing to be bought or sold. That’s not…” he started rising from the table.

“Sit!” Riddick growled.

Vaako sat, but continued glaring at his new Lord Marshall. He waited until the anger that shouldn’t be there had dissipated some. Finally, he asked, “why me?”

Riddick was quiet for a while, then suddenly stood up, gesturing for Vaako to stay seated when he moved to follow. “You ever feel odd around the Purifier? The one you brought to Crematoria with you.”

Confused with the sudden change in topic, Vaako frowned and shook his head. “I didn’t like him, but I don’t like any of the purifiers. They are a necessity only.”

“To keep your troops nice and dull. And don’t think we’re not gonna talk about that.” He pointed at Vaako, then waved off his attempt at arguing. “That’s not the point now. You are.”

“I what?” Tired of being confused, Vaako stood, facing his Lord Marshall. “I’m sorry, my lord, but I don’t understand what you’re saying. Is there a point?” he finished, almost petulantly.

Riddick quickly moved up, pinning Vaako between him and the table. He smirked quickly at the flash of uncertainty in the hazel eyes, then started unbuckling Vaako’s armor.

A growl from Riddick stopped Vaako’s protest. He stood quietly as Riddick stripped it, and threw it carelessly to the side.

Finally down to the black bodysuit, Riddick moved back. “Show me your chest.”

“My lord?” Vaako asked, not quite afraid of the answer.

Riddick sighed. “Just do it. I want you to see something.”

Unsure what Riddick could show him on his own body, Vaako nevertheless complied. He reached back to loosen the laces, then peeled off the top, pulling his arms out one by one. Keeping Riddick’s gaze, he let the top drop down, not noticing at first the change. Then, he saw the glow. “What?” he almost yelped, surprised by the glowing hand on his chest.

Riddick carefully placed his hand over the one on Vaako’s chest, then pulled the neck of his own shirt aside. “It means you’re like me. Well, kind of,” he added, smirking. “You’re Furyan, too.”

Not sure what to make of this new information, Vaako asked about the first thing that had confused him. “What does this have to do with the purifier?”

“He was Furyan.” Riddick studied Vaako. “For someone as afraid of Furyans as he was, Zhylaw sure had a lot of them close to him.”

Filled with questions, Vaako wasn’t sure where to begin, or even if there were answers to them. “We don’t know why they were there, how many there are, or if Lord Marshall Zhylaw knew about them, us.” He looked at Riddick, “does it even matter?”

Riddick shrugged. “We can look into it later. For now, though, my advisors need to advise me.” He moved back in front of Vaako, softly traced the hand once more, then held up the suit for Vaako to slip his arms into. “Think you can work with your ex-wife?”

Vaako moved back to readjust his clothing. “I can do anything you ask of me, my Lord,” he answered, letting a small smirk through.

“We’ll see about that,” Riddick threw back, then gestured to the chairs. “Let’s call them in, and see how it goes, then.”

 

Riddick and Vaako waited side by side while Lady Grey and Aereon were ushered into the room.

“Welcome ladies,” Riddick drawled, gesturing to the chairs opposite them. He watched Lady Grey closely, glaring at her when she seemed to want to speak to Vaako. “Shall we get started,” he intoned, making eye contact with Lord Vaako, then sitting back.

“The armada is completely removed from the planet below; the soldiers and ships previously left are now back with us.” He waited for acknowledgement from Riddick before continuing. “Lord Zhylaw,” Vaako said carefully, “had been planning on attacking Helion 5 next. That, however, will have to be postponed.”

“It will?” Riddick asked suspiciously. “Is there somewhere else you think we’re supposed to be going?”

“Yes, my lord,” Lady Grey spoke up. “Each new Lord Marshall takes a pilgrimage to the Underverse.”

“This Underverse is a real place?” Riddick asked suspiciously.

Lady Grey frowned, but calmly continued, “It is the foundation of our religion. Our purpose is to…”

“Yeah, yeah,” Riddick interrupted, “I’ve heard the spiel.”

“Lord Marshall, I assure you…”

“Listen,” Riddick interrupted her again. “I’m not the kind of guy that takes things on faith. I’m not so sure you do, either,” he said knowingly. “In fact, I’d say that Lord Vaako here is the one who believes the most, and even then…I’m not so sure.”

Vaako narrowed his eyes at Riddick, but remained silent.

“So, we get to the threshold, then what? And why can’t you guys go through, if that’s what you’re so excited about?”

“For one thing, the guardians at the gates will only let the Lord Marshall through,” Vaako answered. “You experience the Underverse so you are better able to lead us. The Lord Marshall inspires with his vision of the Underverse.”

Riddick looked at Aereon. “And the fancy powers they get?”

She looked to Lady Grey, then Lord Vaako before answering Riddick. “Not much is known about how it works. All previous Lord Marshalls have been quiet on the subject.”

“Hmmm…” Riddick thought, sitting back in his chair. “So what about purification? Am I expected to do that?”

“Normally the new Lord Marshall is already a purified Necromonger, we’ve never had this happen before,” Lady Grey answered.

“Before Kyra died, she told me that she could almost see the Underverse through his eyes. Does this mean that the Lord Marshall is involved in purification? Would it even work now?” Riddick looked to Vaako.

“Yes,” Vaako answered. “It’s only a… recording, or impression of a sort of what the Lord Marshall has experienced, so it will last until you are prepared to change it.”

“I definitely don’t want him in my head,” Riddick shook his head. “I’m fine just how I am. Right Lord Vaako?” He looked to Vaako, and smirked.

Aereon ignored Riddick’s byplay. “I don’t think it would have been safe, anyway. The process of purification is long, and one is completely helpless during that time.”

“So, no purification, and we’re on our way to the gates of the Underverse,” he reiterated. “Can’t wait,” he said blandly. “Although,” he started thoughtfully, “there is one place I’d like to stop first - Crematoria.”

“My Lord?” Vaako asked.

“I have some unfinished business there,” Riddick answered cryptically.

“Very well,” Vaako rose from the chair. “If you don’t mind, then, I’ll pass on the order.

“Go on,” Riddick gestured to the door. “I’ll expect you back in an hour.”

Vaako looked briefly unsettled, before recovering, bowing to his Lord Marshall, and leaving.

Riddick looked to Lady Grey. “You’re done for now, too. I’ll call for you when you’re needed again.” He watched as she nodded, carefully got up, and left the room.

Aereon looked at Riddick. “So, the Furyans.”

“Do you think there are more?”

“Before Lord Marshall Zhylaw died, I would have said the chances of any Furyan surviving at all much less on ship were too high to name. Now, however, I wonder how many there really are. By his design or not, we may never discover.”

Riddick nodded, agreeing with her assessment. He started to speak, then shook his head, suddenly aware of the dissonance of his behavior now versus before…this all started. Smirking, he thought of how Lord Vaako may help him keep his animal side intact.

“Riddick,” Aereon said again, getting his attention. “You have a thought?”

“No,” he said, “something else,” he leered.

She sighed at his behavior. “How shall we find them? They don’t look or scan differently. And the Lord Marshall certainly cannot waste his time, or been seen going from person to person, ripping aside their clothing to look for a glowing hand. How close do you have to be to feel Lord Vaako?”

“Too close. For other people.” Riddick sat back, rubbing his hand along his neck, then up to his ear. He scratched idly, then suddenly stopped. “Does purification happen only the once?”

Aereon picked up a nearby data device, and started to scan through it. “Let’s see if the answer is in here.” She took a few moments, scrolling through it, then, “ah, there is mention of purification records, but I can’t access them from this.”

Riddick pushed a button next to the communications console on the table. After a second, a somewhat thin, dark haired Necro in robes entered the room, and bowed. Riddick frowned, “You’re not the guy that was here earlier.”

The Necro glanced up at Riddick, then back down to the ground. “No, My Lord Marshall. Lord Vaako said you would prefer having a new assistant. He chose me specifically for you,” he finished with a hint of pride.

“Really,” Riddick drawled, closely inspecting him. “Come a little closer.” He crooked his finger.

“Yes, My Lord,” he answered, starting to tremble a little. He visibly took a breath, and moved to the side of Riddick’s chair.

Riddick smiled as he lightly scratched his chest. “So he did. What’s your name, then?”

The Necro relaxed slightly in apparent relief. “Alun, My Lord.”

“Well, Alun, two things,” Riddick held up his fingers. “One, stop calling me My Lord every two seconds. And two, I want the purification records.”

“Yes, My…” Alun stopped at Riddick’s glare. “Then what do I call you?”

“Glad to see there’s a little fire,” Riddick said approvingly. “Riddick.”

Alun reached behind Riddick to grab a slightly larger data device off a shelf. “Only basic information is available from the small data devices.” He placed the larger one in front of Riddick. “These are meant for the Lord Marshall, his advisors, and top commanders.” He turned on the device, and moved through the folders quickly. “Of course, only the Lord Marshall has access to all files.” Looking at Riddick, he finished, “and you are able to determined who sees what information.”

“Yeah,” Riddick said, taking in the information, but not obviously impressed by it. “Show me your purification record.”

Alun nodded, and quickly brought up his own record. He pointed to the top, “this is basic information; which planet I was taken from, first purification, which section I was put into…” scrolling down, he continued, “and this is my purification record since then.”

“Okay,” Riddick said, looking at the data. “Now show me the record of your predecessor.”

Alun frowned in confusion, but did as he was asked. “Here, L-, Riddick.”

“Good,” Riddick answered, scrolling down. He read it for a minute, frowning, then looked back up at Alun. “That’s all for now.”

Alun bowed, “yes, Riddick,” then left the room.

Riddick scooted nearer to Aereon, and showed her the screen. “The frequency of purification is the same for these two. However…”

“…the time in the chamber during each purification is much longer for the Furyan.” Aereon finished. “Let’s see if this holds true,” she said, watching as Riddick pulled up Vaako’s record.

They both looked up at a knock at the door. Alun stuck his head in to announce Lord Vaako’s return.

“Ahhh, he’s back,” Riddick drawled, smirking. He pushed the device toward Aereon. “Why don’t you start working on this, while I meet with Lord Vaako? I’m sure Alun would be happy to help you.”

Successfully suppressing an eye roll, Aereon stood up, taking the data device in her arms. “I’ll see you in the morning, then.”

“Oh yeah,” he growled, nodded for Alun to open the door for her. Riddick watched as she left, and Lord Vaako entered. “Alun, we’re not to be disturbed tonight.”

Vaako rolled his eyes as he shut the door. “Are you planning something tonight, my lord?”

“Yeah, I am,” Riddick growled, getting out of the chair, and moving around to where Vaako stood. Leaning in, he smelled Vaako’s neck, “mmm…” then stepped back. “I had a meal set up for us in the bedroom.” He walked to the door, opened it, and gestured Vaako through.

Not having been in the inner rooms before, Vaako surveyed his new surroundings. Against the wall to the right was a large bed, covered in black and silver, with a heavy wooden chest on either side, and a closed door past the far chest. A comfortable sitting area, with a few chairs and low tables was situated a little to the right of the bed. To the left, a set of shelves covered the wall, outlining another closed door. And in front of the main door sat a heavy wooden table surrounded by four chairs. Currently it held several covered dishes that gave off appetizing smells.

Riddick followed him through, putting a hand low on his back to encourage him towards the table. “Shall we?” He led Vaako to one of the seats, then sat down opposite.

Vaako took the lid off his plate, and raised his eyebrows at what he saw. “Quite the meal,” he said, looking suspiciously at Riddick.

“I take care of what’s mine,” he answered bluntly.

“Aside from the fact that you don’t own me,” he held up a finger as Riddick started to argue. “Apart from that, does what’s yours include the Necromongers? Or only those like you?” Vaako placed a hand over the mark on his chest.

“That’s the question, isn’t it?” Riddick answered, crossing his arms and sitting back in his chair. “I won’t let you continue blowing up planets.” He held up a finger as Vaako started to interrupt, “ah, ah, it’s my turn. But, I see no reason to make any major changes until after I’ve taken my little trip to the Underverse.”

“And purification?” Vaako asked, challenging.

“I don’t like the idea that they’re still using Zhylaw’s memories, but I suppose there’s no other choice right now?” He sighed at Vaako’s nod. “How long until we reach the Underverse?”

“Not including any days spent at your requested stop, it will take twenty-seven days; seven to Crematoria, and twenty after that.”

“Won’t take long there, just picking something up,” Riddick mused. “Okay, continue purifications, but for now you and Alun, at least, aren’t going.”

“Yes, My Lord,” Vaako replied, not surprised. Then, at Riddick’s questioning eyebrow, he answered, “I thought you might give that order.”

“Trying to get ahead of me, Lord Vaako?” Riddick challenged.

“Not at all, My Lord,” Vaako answered haughtily, “just trying to anticipate your needs, like any good servant would.”

Riddick looked at him a moment longer, then started laughing. “You’re a difficult one, aren’t you, Vaako? It’s a good thing I like difficult.”

Somewhat chastised, Vaako looked down to his plate, and started eating. Comfortable silence reigned while the two men finished their meals. Finally, Vaako looked back at Riddick. “It’s interesting that the previous Lord Marshall had at least three Furyan males, the very creatures he feared, close to him all this time. Perhaps he thought purified Furyans didn’t pose a threat.”

“Then why didn’t he just purify them all, instead of wiping them out?” Riddick growled. “No, I think he didn’t know; accidentally picked them up on other planets.”

“How many?” Vaako asked, genuinely curious.

“Aereon’s checking. We think there might be a difference in purification between Furyans and others. We’ll see.” He pushed his plate away. “Now, that’s enough talk about work. Why don’t we move on to more interesting topics?” he asked, leering at Vaako.

Vaako rolled his eyes. “Must we?”

Riddick pushed his chair back, standing up, and moving over to Vaako’s chair. “We must.” He held out his hand, waiting for Vaako to take it.

Vaako looked up at his new Lord Marshall; a little coarse and a lot blunt, but strong and not difficult to look at. He saw the silvery eyes, the well-built shoulders, leading down to muscled arms, and finally to the one callused hand held open in front of him. Taking the hand, he stood up.

Riddick kept hold of Vaako’s hand, using it to pull him in closer. Lifting his chin slightly, he slowly, carefully brought his lips to Lord Vaako’s for a brief, chaste kiss. Pulling back, he smiled once, and then let Vaako’s hand go. “Your things have been moved to the room next door,” he gestured to the closed door near the bookcases. “You can sleep there, for now.”

Vaako nodded, and backed away a few steps, not quite sure what was going on. “My Lord Marshall…” he started.

“It’s Riddick,” he corrected quietly. “Am I gonna have to go through this with all of you?”

“Possibly,” Vaako replied, only somewhat reassured. “But, may I ask, was I not pleasing to you?”

Riddick laughed. “Oh, you’re very pleasing. Don’t worry Vaako. I just prefer that my partners come willingly.” He winked, then pointed to the door. “Go. We have a long day tomorrow.”

Shaking his head at Riddick’s behavior, Vaako finally left the room.

Riddick watched him leave, then went to his own bed, wondering himself why he had turned down such a perfect bedmate. “Ah well,” he said to himself, “the anticipation will make it all the sweeter.”

The next day Aereon, Riddick, and Vaako met in the morning. Alun had brought in breakfast for them to eat while they discussed Aereon’s findings.

“It appears, Riddick, that our guess was correct so far. There are several individuals with higher purification times,” she reported, sliding her data device toward Riddick. “As you can see, there are one thousand that are significantly higher, and another two thousand that are only slightly higher. A large number, even if all those in the second group aren’t Furyan.”

Riddick took the device, pulling it between himself and Vaako. “More than I expected, really. Not that I know what to do with them, now that we know.”

Vaako looked from Aereon to Vaako. “What are your plans? Necromongers can’t breed; you cannot increase the Furyan population.”

“First of all, I’m not sure what will happen to your body when you don’t keep up the purifications, so don’t say never. Second, I may do nothing with the information, who knows right now.” He slid the device back to Aereon. “But I was thinking that at least a few of those Furyans should be good for fighting with; I’m going to get tired of sitting around.”

Vaako’s eyes sparkled. “Then perhaps we should spar.” Seeing Riddick’s leer, he frowned, and added, “in the practice room.”

Riddick laughed, then nodded. “By all means, Vaako. Maybe tomorrow, though. This afternoon I want to learn more about my new people.” He frowned playfully at Vaako’s suspicious look, then added, “You and Lady Grey are going to teach us Necromonger history.”

After a light lunch Riddick, Vaako, and Aereon met Lady Grey back in the meeting room. “I thought it would be a good idea to get to know the history of my new people,” Riddick started, looking at the other three at the table. “The three of you should be able to get me up to date on this, correct?”

Lady Grey looked at the others, then answered. “Yes, Lord Riddick.”

Between Lady Grey, Lord Vaako, Aereon, and Riddick’s data device, over the next few hours Riddick learned about the Necromongers, their ways, and the Lord Marshalls who molded them. They started with the first Lord Covu, who began the movement. He was the one who found and first saw the Underverse, bringing back the ideology. Oltovm who built the Necropolis. Then Naphemil, the third Lord Marshall, brought the planet-bound Necromongers to the stars. Baylock and Krill increased Necromonger power and numbers. Finally Zhylaw, the sixth Lord Marshall, who started the ascension protocol to aid in the Necromonger goal to wipe the universe of life.

When they had finally finished, well after the evening meal, Riddick sat back and was quiet for a while. Finally, he summed it up, “so, your beliefs are based on a crazy, homicidal guy who supposedly saw his family while visiting the Underverse.”

“Lord Riddick…”

Riddick interrupted, holding up his hand, “now, now, don’t get upset,” he smirked, “I’ve been accused of that myself once or twice.” He looked pointedly at Lady Grey, “and I’m still keeping my word. I won’t make any big changes until after we’ve had our little visit to the Underverse.”

She nodded patiently, “thank you, Lord Riddick.”

“So ladies,” Riddick said, standing up, “that’s it for tonight. We’ll see you in the morning.” He nodded to Vaako, then led the way into the inner chambers.

As soon as the door had shut behind Vaako, Riddick turned, and pulled him in for a kiss. He slowly brought his tongue across Vaako’s bottom lip, leaned back a little, and then gave one more gentle brush of lips. Stepping away, he slapped Vaako on the shoulder, and wished him goodnight.

The next morning Riddick and Vaako were finishing up their meal, when there was a knock at the bedroom door. At Riddick’s command, Alun entered briefly, and announced that his other advisors had arrived, then left then alone once again.

Riddick looked at Vaako, watching his muscles bunch and shift under the tight body suit as he moved the chair back, and stood up. “Necro clothing surely is a wonder to behold,” he murmured.

“My Lord?” Vaako questioned, having not quite heard Riddick’s remark.

Pushing his chair back, Riddick stood as well. “Time to get to work,” he said, ignoring Vaako’s question. Gesturing to the door, he followed Vaako into the meeting room.

“Ladies,” he greeted, walking over and taking his seat next to Vaako. “This morning I thought we’d discuss the Underverse.”

“Lord Riddick, we did go over that yesterday,” Lady Grey pointed out carefully.

“Brave, I like that,” he murmured, eyeing her. “I know what the history says. I wanna know what Necros think it is. Why is it so wonderful?”

Everyone was quiet initially, then Lady Grey spoke again, “the Lord Marshall has seen it, and tells us it is so. We see it in our purification.”

“Okay. But what do you actually see?” He looked at Lady Grey and Vaako, waiting for an answer.

“Nothing,” Vaako replied. “During the pain of purification, Underverse is given as the ideal alternative. It’s more ideas and vague images, rather than a clear view.”

“Hmm…” Riddick nodded, thinking. “And your experience is the same?” He asked, looking at Lady Grey.

“Yes, Lord Riddick.”

“So what makes it so special? What about it specifically makes it so important that you gotta wipe out the universe for it?”

“It’s supposed to be paradise,” Aereon said, “but what constitutes paradise is different from person to person.” She lifted a shoulder in a faint shrug, “from what we’ve learned of the previous Lord Marshals who have seen it, it could be anything from complete peace, to the worst evil things and fighting you could imagine. Although, I would suggest it was more on the aggressive side.”

Riddick looked at Lady Grey, “are you thinking of clear skies, green fields, and free love, or is it more giant dark statues?”

She was quiet for a while, then finally answered, “I’m not sure, Lord Riddick.”

“Hmm..” he replied, then looked at Vaako. “You?”

“I’m not sure what I’d do with green fields. Necromongers are more likely to turn it into a battlefield.”

“But is that what you want?” Riddick pressed.

“I want…I want peace, I think,” he finished quietly, then looked up at Riddick, almost afraid of what thoughts he’d see reflected on that strong face.

“That’s what I thought.” He looked around the table. “It seems like there’s a lot of following, and not thinking around here. Not…” he held up his hand to forestall comments, “that that’s a bad thing – when they’re my commands, anyway. But I wonder what everybody would think if the true nature of the Underverse was known.”

Silence reigned while the others at the table contemplated. Finally, Riddick pushed his chair back. “But, those kinds of questions will have to wait until we’ve arrived. So,” he turned to Vaako, “you ready to spar?”

Vaako stood as well, nodding to Aereon and Lady Grey as they left. He turned to Riddick, and smirked, “I’m ready if you are.”

Riddick just looked at him and shook his head. “After you,” he gestured to the door.

Vaako lead them out the main door, into the hallway. Turning right, he continued along it until he reached a door on the left side. He put in an access code, then walked in when the door slid open. The room was big enough for only a few people to spar at any one time, but had a fairly high ceiling, ensuring it didn’t feel too closed in. One of the walls had racks holding several different weapon types – from small knives to multi-headed axes on staffs at least six feet long. Mats covered the other three walls, and were also piled in one corner of the wood floor.

“Cushy,” Riddick mused, poking at the soft mat along one of the walls.

Vaako shrugged, “we wouldn’t like for our Lord Marshall to get hurt, would we?”

“Or the Lord Marshall’s poor partner?” Riddick answered, laughing.

“So,” Vaako said, changing the subject, “what would you like to start with?” He pointed at the weapons one by one, “knife, dagger, sword, axe? All dulled, of course. Mostly.” He smirked.

Giving Vaako a predatory look, Riddick stepped to the middle of the room. “Why don’t we just start with our hands?” He crouched, and waited for Vaako to attack.

Over the next hour, Riddick and Vaako fought hand to hand, learning each other’s styles, weaknesses, and strengths. Vaako even managed to occasionally pin Riddick, but never for long. By the end, though, it was clear who the better fighter was, and Vaako conceded – for that day.

Walking back to their rooms, Riddick quietly asked, “are the Necros taught to fight like that, or are they only taught weapons?”

“For the most part, they’re only taught weapons. The soldiers who show promise in initial training are taught more advanced techniques.” He looked at Riddick briefly, then continued, “and to answer your unasked question, I learned most of what I know here.”

“Most.”

“I don’t remember my life before this. Perhaps I was taught something only my muscles remember.”

“Maybe,” Riddick agreed. “Or maybe it’s instinct,” he offered with a smirk.

Vaako rolled his eyes, and made his way into their rooms. He stopped just inside the bedroom door, leaned against it, and waited for Riddick to enter. “Is there anything else you require at this time, My Lord?” he asked silkily.

Riddick just shook his head at Vaako’s deliberate goading. “I’m good for now,” he said, smirking. “I’ll see you back here for the evening meal.”

“Yes, My Lord,” Vaako answered, bowing.

Laughing, Riddick shoved him away. “Go.” He watched as Vaako gave him a sly smile, then left the room. “Mmm…lots of fire.” He sighed, “but not yet.”

Vaako had returned just in time for dinner. He opened the door, and slipped through to the bedroom just as the servant was setting out the food.

“Cutting it kind of close.” Riddick observed from his seat at the table.

Seating himself, Vaako nodded for the servant to leave. When they were alone, he answered. “The other commanders were somewhat restless. It took me some time to calm them down.” He served himself, then looked back at Riddick. “They’re not used to long periods of inactivity. This trip to the Threshold, and not knowing what’s going to occur is not making it any easier.”

“They want to fight, and there’s none to be had. You set them up?”

Vaako frowned, “Set them up? We devised a training schedule that should keep everyone busy for now.”

“I’ve been thinking,” Riddick started slowly, “that we should include more unarmed hand to hand.”

“My Lord?”

“It makes better fighters. Fighters that don’t always have to kill,” he said, looking meaningfully at Vaako.

Vaako held Riddick’s gaze, “I agree.”

“Good.” Riddick answered, getting up from the table. “Now,” he started, taking Vaako’s hand, and pulling him up from his chair, “it’s time to say goodnight.” He joined their free hands, then ran his fingers lightly up the muscled arms, to the strong shoulders. Leaning in, he caught Vaako’s lips in a passionate kiss, nipping at his lips, then exploring his mouth with an agile tongue. Riddick wrapped his right arm around Vaako’s back, while he let the other one drift down to his ass. After a few seconds he trailed his right hand down to the tight ass, squeezing with both hands. He pulled back, leaving a brief kiss. “Goodnight.”

Slightly dazed, Vaako took a deep breath, and then opened his eyes. “Goodnight. Riddick.” He slowly backed up, then turned to go through to his own bed. Alone.

The next morning after breakfast, Riddick and Vaako moved to the sitting area with their data devices. Vaako had training schedules to adjust, while Riddick continued studying Necromonger history. They worked in quiet for quite a while, then Riddick broke the silence, “what do you think about living on a planet?”

Vaako looked up, curious. “Like the early Necromongers did?”

“Something like that.” Riddick shrugged. “I’m not sure.”

“If it meant completely relocating to a planet, that wouldn’t go over well right now. Our whole society is based on fighting and conquering planets. Grounding the armada would make that very difficult.”

“Okay,” Riddick nodded. “What if, theoretically, we could fulfill the need to fight? Or, what if when the dullness of purification wears off, some of them don’t wanna fight anymore?”

“We’d need to feed them all,” Vaako held up fingers as he spoke, “housing, something to keep especially the soldiers occupied, protection for the planet – we’d be a lot more vulnerable.”

“When you take new converts, do they all become soldiers?” Riddick asked, then answered himself, “obviously not, since there are servants around. How do you choose who goes where?”

“Most new converts become soldiers. If we have a need for another type of worker, then we’ll take out likely candidates from the new converts.”

“Likely candidates,” Riddick prompted.

“We may ask what their skills are. Or take some smaller or weaker converts for servants.” Vaako looked at Riddick, “But there is no record of their…previous life.”

“Hmm…” Riddick answered. “Theoretically, though, most of the people you had collected on Helion Prime weren’t soldiers.”

Vaako nodded, “about half the planets have fought back. We get mostly civilians from those. Although they may still turn out to be formidable fighters.”

“So we may have the people we need.” Seeing Vaako’s angry look, he added, “if we needed them.” He laughed as Vaako’s appearance changed to frustrated amusement. “Speaking of soldiers,” he started, standing up, “let’s go check up on them.”

“Whatever you wish, Lord Riddick,” he bowed, smirking at Riddick’s glare, then led him out of the room.

Vaako and Riddick made their way to the soldiers’ levels. Each level had barracks and storage rooms surrounding an open section. As the practice area for the regiments, they held sparring rings, shooting lanes, and in the pilots’ section simulators were also present. Like the main command level, the main soldier level held a large central open area with high ceilings. It was mainly used for training between regiments, but the Lord Marshall or his First could also observe the troops from a second floor balcony.

Vaako watched as Riddick sat, then seated himself on the balcony chairs. He looked down on the men sparring on the floor below. “These are some of our best soldiers.”

Riddick grunted, watching carefully. “They’re kind of sloppy.” Seeing Vaako about to speak, he continued, “Don’t get all upset. I know they conquer planets, but they do it with numbers. How many ships in the armada, and they’re filled with soldiers.”

Not willing yet to agree with Riddick, he remained quiet.

Riddick watched for a while longer, then asked, “are there private sparring rooms here, as well?”

“On every level.” Vaako answered, giving Riddick a curious look.

“We should start at the top. Let the commanders learn how to fight first.” He glanced at Vaako, then back to the floor below. “I think they’d prefer getting their asses kicked in a private setting.”

Vaako snickered in spite of himself, then shook his head. “I’ll work out a schedule.”

“Good. We can start tomorrow,” Riddick ordered, turning to watch Vaako.

Vaako rolled his eyes. “You really enjoy making my life difficult, don’t you?”

Riddick just gave a small smile, not saying anything, then turned back to the soldiers.

“Very well My Lord Riddick.” Vaako replied, watching Riddick’s shoulders stiffen slightly with the formal address.

After another hour, the soldiers had finished their exhibition. Riddick and Vaako stood, nodding to the commanders below, then made their way back to the command deck.

When they had reached Riddick’s rooms, Vaako halted while Riddick moved through the door. He waited until Riddick turned around with a curious look. “I need to go prepare the commanders for tomorrow. They’ll need to understand what we’re doing.”

“Holding their hands, Vaako?”

“More like, smoothing the way.” He gave Riddick a pointed look.

“Fine,” he grumbled, then waved him away. “Go.”

Vaako inclined his head, then left.

Later that evening an exhausted Vaako walked back into the rooms. He saw Riddick sitting on one of the couches, still looking at whatever he had in his lap. Vaako winced a little as he walked by the cooling dinner on the table. He had, however, completed his tasks, so he held on to that as he finally made his way to the chair facing Riddick.

“You’re late,” he ground out, looking up from the data device in his lap. “I don’t like being made to wait.”

Vaako nodded quietly. He studied Riddick carefully before answering. “The other commanders are on board with the new training plan.”

“Good.” Riddick got up, gesturing for Vaako to follow him to the table. He sat, and waited for Vaako to follow. “You get any injuries?”

Vaako shook his head, “managed not to injure any of them too badly, either.”

Riddick smirked. “An ass kicking often changes minds.”

Chuckling, Vaako started in on his food.

As they ate, Vaako reported on his meeting with the other commanders. “As I had feared, they were slow to accept the new training ideas.”

Riddick frowned. “They’re too used to winning easily. Lazy gets you killed.”

Vaako sighed, then conceded, “strength in numbers has made some too sure of the outcome.” He smirked. “For instance, just this afternoon, I illustrated for Toal and Scales how easy it is to lose in unarmed combat.”

“Take’em down quickly?”

“I might have used a few tricks that you’ve taught me. Along with some of my own, of course,” Vaako finished playfully.

“Of course,” Riddick agreed, then pushed his plate away. He watched as Vaako finished his food, and then stood.

Vaako stood as well, stepping up to Riddick, and almost sighing in comfort as strong arms wrapped around him. He leaned in, and met Riddick’s lips with his.

Groaning as Vaako opened his mouth, Riddick swept his tongue in, meeting the other in a slow caress. At the same time, he ran his hands down Vaako’s back to his ass. He squeezed it, then grabbed the hips, pulling them in to grind cock against cock.

Vaako moaned as he felt his Lord’s hard cock against him, then whimpered as it was suddenly taken away. “What?” He asked, dazed, and opened his eyes to see a smirking Riddick. Immediately glaring, he reached down to feel his partner’s still hard cock, and squeezed.

Riddick groaned, but grasped Vaako’s hand, pulling it away. “Not yet.” He brought the hand still captured in his own to his lips, and kissed it. “Soon,” he whispered, leaning in for a chase kiss to Vaako’s lips, then stepped away.

Somewhat confused, and a lot frustrated, Vaako nodded. “Goodnight.” He hesitated, about to say something, then left for his own room.

The next morning they’re both quiet at breakfast. Vaako occasionally looked at Riddick, trying to figure him out, but gave up after a while. He sighed, then asked about the other thing on his mind. “You ever going to share the reason we’re going to Crematoria?”

Riddick sat back, and smirked at Vaako, “was waiting for you to ask.”

Vaako barely refrained from rolling his eyes. “So I’m asking. And you’re already said you wanted to pick something up.”

“A few somethings, actually. Not people,” he added quickly at Vaako’s look. “Made a friend down there with a hellhound. Figured they would be good bodyguards. Besides,” he drawled, “eating prisoners is so bad for them.”

“Hellhounds,” Vaako repeated, watching the evil grin grow on his Lord’s face. “You’ve got to be kidding.” He paused, and then continued, “you’re serious.” He was about to start ranting, when they were interrupted.

“My Lord Riddick,” Alun bowed. “The other commanders are ready and waiting for you in the sparring rooms.”

“Well, then. Let’s go have some fun.” Riddick left the room, closely followed by Vaako.

They made their way back down to the soldier levels, where they entered one of the enclosed sparring rooms. Inside they found Toal and Scales already present, their armor neatly set out of the way. Riddick was a little surprised by that, but one glance at the smug look sent his way from Vaako answered any questions.

“Vaako,” Riddick nodded to the sparring ring. “And Toal. Let’s see what you’ve got.” Toal joined Vaako in the ring, and soon they were locked in combat. Riddick watched as Toal held his own briefly before being thrown to the mat, Vaako looking down at him triumphantly. Grinning while shaking his head at Vaako, he waited for Scales to take Toal’s place on the mat. As soon as they were in place, Riddick nodded for them to start.

This fight was more evenly matched. Vaako and Scales traded the upper hand several times before finally Vaako pinned him.

“Not bad.” Riddick moved toward Vaako and Scales, gesturing for Toal to join them. “But here’s a few things you could have done differently.”

Over the next two hours Riddick made adjustments and comments as the two commanders fought Vaako, or each other. Vaako always won his matches, but matches between the other two were variable. Scales was the stronger of the two lower commanders, but Toal was quicker, making for a surprisingly even match. As they took on the suggestions made by their Lord Marshall, the bouts remained even, but much more explosive.

Finally, Riddick called a halt, and walked out to his commanders. “Good. You can start working on the soldiers.”

“We will be continuing our sessions here once a week at least,” Vaako added.

Toal and Scales nodded their understanding, then collected their armor, and left the room.

“So what do you think?” Vaako asked quietly.

“I think I wanna do some sparring of my own,” Riddick raised an eyebrow, and leaned toward Vaako.

“I thought you were stronger than that, but if you need to fight against someone who’s already been working for a while to win, then let’s go.” He stepped back, eyes sparkling with humor, and got into position.

“Fine,” Riddick growled, rolling his eyes. “We’ll give the poor worn out warrior a break.”

“Why thank you, my Lord,” Vaako replied, bowing low. “Shall this poor worn out warrior accompany you to your midday meal?”

Riddick laughed, and pushed Vaako toward the exit following him out, “let’s get out of here.”

They made their way back to their rooms, discussing the sparring as they went. Riddick was not impressed, but thought they might be acceptable given more time. Vaako was somewhat more forgiving, thinking that they would do well teaching the troops.

"We'll see how far they get in the next couple of weeks. I'll wanna watch them when I get back from the Underverse."

Vaako watched him for a few steps, then nodded.

Finally making it back to the rooms, Riddick turned around, grabbed Vaako's hands, and pulled him through the anteroom into the private rooms beyond. "So what do you think we should do now?" He leaned in close, pressing a kiss to Vaako's lips.

Vaako returned the kiss, and then leaned back, staring down at his sweaty clothes. "I think I'd like to shower." He smirked at Riddick, then pulled away, starting for the bathing room.

"Okay," Riddick replied, casually walking toward his bed. "I'll just be over here...resting," he finished in a throaty voice.

Frustrated with Riddick's lack of response, Vaako clenched his fists, growling. "Fine," he grit out. Quickly turning around, he leapt at Riddick, throwing them both to the bed.

Riddick chuckled, looking up at the angry man above him. "It's about time," he said, wrapping his arms around Vaako, pulling him tight.

"What? You..." Vaako growled, trying to pull back, but failing.

Riddick reached up to bite the neck bared above him, laughing as he had to dodge the flailing chin. "Mmm...I wanted you to come to me," he said around a biteful of skin. "Make sure you wanted it." He bit down hard, marking Vaako as his.

Vaako howled, and pushed down, briefly biting the other man on the neck, leaving his own mark. Then he moved up, leaving little bites as he moved up the neck to his lips, leaving a small kiss when he got there. "Of course," he murmured, then kissed them again.

Riddick kissed back briefly, and then quickly rolled them over. "Of course," he agreed, then started to explore his new lover.

The next morning found them back at the table hungrily devouring breakfast. “Wonderful,” Riddick moaned around a mouthful of pastry.

“It is,” Vaako agreed, helping himself to more.

Riddick smirked, and leaned back, lightly rubbing his unclothed chest, “although not as good as what you had last night.”

Vaako rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Is this what I’m going to have to put up with from now on?”

“Only until I get tired of you,” Riddick threatened, narrowing his eyes.

Not cowed in the least, Vaako leaned forward, looking straight into Riddick’s eyes. “Not going to happen. Ever.” He smugly sat back, and crossed his arms.

Riddick shrugged a shoulder, quietly conceding the point.

“So,” Vaako said, changing the topic. “We doing anything else at Crematoria?”

“You weren’t on Crematoria very long. Didn’t get to see the sights…meet the residents…”

“I’m pretty sure I was there long enough,” Vaako countered, grimacing. “Met some residents. Killed some residents. Not very exciting. Except for some guy who put down ten of my men at once with some sort of force field.” He looked pointedly at Riddick.

“Ah, rage of Furya; kind of interesting. Knocked me out, though – that wasn’t good.” Riddick shrugged. “Wonder if Breezy has any clues on how to use it without that last part.”

“The rage of Furya?” Vaako asked, suspicious.

“Yeah,” Riddick confirmed. “Neat little trick. Apparently something Furyans can do; or some of us, anyway,” he finished smugly.

Vaako just shook his head. “So what did I miss on the great planet Crematoria?”

“Just the Hellhounds.”

“Just the Hellhounds? No prisoners?” Vaako asked, just to be sure.

“Yep,” Riddick answered bluntly. “The prisoners aren’t worth it. Wouldn’t trust’em enough, anyway.”

“Okay,” Vaako started carefully, “so what do these Hellhounds eat?”

“Prisoners.”

“And here?” Vaako asked suspiciously.

“Necros?” Riddick asked, trying not to smile.

“No Necros,” Vaako admonished, pointing his finger at Riddick. “If we’re not taking converts, we can’t lose people unnecessarily.”

“Just thought I’d ask.” Riddick smirked.

“Incorrigible,” Vaako muttered.

“Exactly,” Riddick agreed, laughing. “Just wait ‘til I tell you how we’re getting them up here.”

Dropping his head onto his hand, Vaako started rubbing his forehead. “And how is that going to occur? More Furyan magic?” He suddenly looked back up at Riddick, suspicious. “There isn’t anything else, is there?”

“Not that I know of. Dream girl only clued me into the rage.”

“Dream girl?”

“Saw her a few times. The first was when I was in cryo, so dream girl.” Riddick chuckled at Vaako’s incredulous look. “Probably some repressed memory or shit. Told me about the Furyans gettin' offed. Gave me the glowy hand,” he nodded down at his chest. “Saw her right before I blasted your guys.” Riddick raised his eyebrows, daring Vaako to say anything.

“Hmm,” Vaako murmured, leaning back in the chair, arms crossed. “How are we getting the hellhounds up here, then, oh most high lord?”

“Oooh, I like that. You can call me that from now on instead of Riddick.”

Vaako glowered at him, not humored in the least.

“Okay, fine,” Riddick conceded, controlling his grin. “I’m gonna go down and get them by myself.”

“No you’re not.”

“They’ll eat anyone who comes with me.” Riddick countered.

“It’s a hostile planet with residents who probably want to kill you. Not that I’m surprised at that,” Vaako offered.

“Hey, I’ve spent the majority of my life taking care of myself, and haven’t died yet. I’ll be just fine down there.” Riddick reassured. “Besides,” he added, “been awhile since I’ve had a real fight.”

Vaako sighed in irritation. “It’s been a week.”

“Like I said, a while.” Riddick smirked.

“I’m sure you’ve gone longer than that before. Now,” he straightened, and pointed a finger at Riddick, “you will go down to that planet with at least ten guards. You will keep your hellbeasts under control…”

“Hellhounds,” Riddick interrupted.

“Whatever,” Vaako continued. “And you will come back safely.”

“Yes dear,” Riddick answered, only slightly joking.

“Good.” Vaako nodded.

“And you’ll stay up here,” Riddick added, “in control while I’m gone.” Under his breath, he added, “and safer.”

Vaako heard the last comment, but let it go, not surprised by Riddick’s protectiveness.

They were both quiet for a while, finishing their meal, then Vaako looked up at Riddick. “Where, exactly, are the hellhounds going to stay? There are how many of them?”

“Six, last I counted,” Riddick answered. “And in your room.”

“What?”

“Well, the room that was yours, that is now theirs.” Riddick smirked, “It’s being remodeled today for them; gotta have them close by.” He leered at Vaako, “gonna be sleeping in my bed, anyway.”

Ignoring the leer, Vaako opened his mouth to speak, shut it, then opened it again. “But…huh,” he glared at Riddick, then got up to go to his room.

Riddick laughed, and got up, quickly overtaking him. He wrapped his arms around Vaako, and walked them both to the bed, tripping them both onto it, landing on top of Vaako. “I’ve got it covered,” he reassured, then softly kissed Vaako.

Vaako returned the kiss, then pulled back, “crazy man, always have to be in control.”

Riddick shrugged; of course he did.

Vaako looked up at Riddick through his eyelashes, “I’m a big boy, too.”

Ignoring the obvious innuendo for once, Riddick leaned his forehead against Vaako’s. “You are. And you’re a very good fighter. Just let me do this.”

Vaako sighed and pulled away, letting himself relax back into the bed. “Okay. But only for you.”

Riddick growled, “only for me,” then brought his head down, kissing Vaako deeply.

The next day Vaako walked Riddick down to the loading bay where the smaller transport ships were held. The space was big enough to hold twenty of the ten man ships, but small enough to see the opposite side. As opposed to the rest of the giant basilica, the loading bay was contained by walls devoid of decoration.

“Now this is the kind of place I like. Plenty of ships, and no writhing dead guys on the walls,” Riddick proclaimed as he walked in.

Vaako just rolled his eyes, and continued on to the waiting ship. The ten-man team Vaako had picked to assist their Lord Marshall was already on board, and the ship was ready to take off. He stopped Riddick before they got to the door. “Joran is our best pilot, so he’ll be able to get down through the atmosphere without any trouble. He’ll wait for you while you go on your little hunt. The others I’ve picked from my best men.”

“Hey,” Riddick interrupted, putting a hand on his shoulder. “I’ll see ya in a bit. Quit worryin'.”

“It’s not proper for the Lord Marshall to…” he stopped at Riddick’s look of derision. “Just make sure they’re house trained,” he said, then stood back and watched as Riddick entered the ship, and it took off.

This entry to Crematoria was nowhere near as rough as the last one Riddick experienced. Not only was this ship much more advanced, but the pilot had had many more hours of training. Of course, this time he also got to sit in his own seat without being locked up; quite the improvement.

Crematoria itself had not changed. They came in while the light was in the valley, heating up the ship before it made it into the protected landing bay. Unsurprisingly there was no one there to greet them. However, the sled had been repaired, and was sitting at the top of the track.

Not ready to assume the guards were completely lax, Riddick left two of his men at the top of the ramp, while he and the others took the sled to the guardroom. The sled ride was just as fast as the previous time, although, as in the case with the ride down to the planet, he had an actual seat this time.

Reaching the bottom of the run, Riddick noted the blast doors were closed. Motioning for his guards to be ready, he pressed the intercom. As they waited longer and longer without any answer, he smirked and pushed the button to talk. “It’s no use hiding in there, we’ll just open the door ourselves if you don’t do it for us,” he cajoled, “besides, I don’t want your sorry asses. I just want to pick up a few friends of mine.”

He waited another few seconds for an answer, then stepped back and nodded at the closest Necro, who pulled out a small tool kit, and set to work on the door panel. Within a few seconds, he had the door unlocked and opening.

The view through the open door started Riddick laughing. “I like this,” he said, looking around. He watched as the Necros relieved the kneeling men of their weapons. “Although,” he continued, “a little resistance might have been more fun for us.”

One of the guards looked up as his gun was taken. “Take whatever you want, just leave us. Please. There’s money in the safe, I’ll get it for you.”

“I don’t want anything from you,” Riddick said. He made his way through the office to the storage room.

“No!” the guard yelled.

Riddick ignored him, and opened the door, quickly finding the cage key hung on the inside wall.

“Please,” he begged.

“There you are. How’re ya doin’?” Riddick said as he crouched down in front of a cage. He quickly open it, and let the hellhound out, laughing as Number 5 head butted him in the chest in welcome. “Good to see you again.” He ran his hand over her head, and then patted her side. “Wanna come home with me?”

Five growled low, and head butted him again.

“That’s what I thought.” He looked around at the other hounds, then back to Five. “But you can’t eat my guys, okay? Wanna keep Vaako happy.” Scratching behind her ears, he promised, “we’ll make sure you’ve got plenty of things to kill.”

She growled again.

He laughed. “Glad to see we’re in agreement.” Standing up, he started opening up the other cages. “Let’s get movin’.”

The other hellhounds jumped out of their cages, growling, but quickly quieted down at a look from Riddick. “Behind,” he said, and pointed a thumb over his shoulder. They quickly fell into line, and followed him as he moved back into the main room.

“No!” the guards yelled, scrambling back despite the Necromonger guards holding guns on them.

Riddick rolled his eyes at their actions, and continued on to the blast doors. He jerked his head toward the door, and heard the Necros fall in behind him. On the far side of the door, he instructed the Necro tech to shut and lock the door. As it closed, he waved a hand at the prison guards, “see ya.”

After sending the sled back up to the top with two of the Necros, Riddick, the hellhounds, and the rest of his guards made their way on foot back up the tunnel to the ship.

Vaako was back in the loading bay to meet the ship. He waited with outward patience as he watched it hover, then slowly descend to the deck. The guards were the first out the door, each nodding respectfully to him as they passed by. Finally, Riddick emerged, smirk in place. Following after were the six hellhounds, quietly surveying their surroundings.

“Vaako,” Riddick said, making his way over. “I’d like you to meet the hellhounds.” He stopped in front of Vaako, and waited for the hounds to sit at his feet. Patting the head of the one closest to him, he said, “they don’t really have names. I’ve been calling this one Five,” he gently pulled on the ear, showing the tag.

Stepping forward carefully, Vaako held out a hand for the hound to smell. He waited while she took her time sniffing and looking at him, then actually smiled when she licked him. “Don’t worry, My Lord,” he said, and stroked her head, “we’ll take good care of the new arrivals.”

As they walked back to their rooms Riddick suddenly turned to Vaako. “So is that my ship?”

Slightly surprised by the sudden topic, Vaako asked, “ship?”

“I figure the Lord Marshall has his own ship.” Riddick shrugged.

“Right,” Vaako answered, giving Riddick a suspicious look. “You planning on going somewhere else I don’t know about?”

“Not me.”

Vaako glared.

“Not you, either.” Riddick laughed. “So untrusting.”

Vaako rolled his eyes. “Right. Because you’ve always been forthcoming with your plans.”

“Heh, yeah.” Riddick shrugged. “I want Breezy to go check something out for me. Is that ship fast?”

“Depends on what you mean by fast.”

“We’ll find out when we talk to Breezy,” Riddick answered, then continued on.

Shaking his head at Riddick’s typical answer, Vaako quickly resumed his place at Riddick’s side.

They entered the rooms through the main door, letting the hounds sniff around in the meeting room before moving through to the private area. Riddick enjoyed watching them explore the area, growling at new scents and sometimes each other.

“Ready to see their new room?” Riddick asked Vaako. When Vaako nodded, he led the way to the door. Opening it, he called to the hounds, “alright guys, here’re your new digs.”

Vaako stepped out of the way as all six of the hounds ran through into the room. He followed them in, and was surprised and impressed by the changes that had been made. Instead of the usual layout of bed and sitting area in one room with a bathing area separated by a door, it was one large open area. In place of the furniture that had been there just a day ago, there was a complex system of ledges and caves of varying heights and sizes. The bathing area had been turned into a waterfall, with an obvious section for elimination in a far corner.

Vaako turned to Riddick, surprised, and not quite sure what to say.

“Turns out there’s a Necro that knows a lot about Hellhounds. Some zoo thing.”

Vaako nodded.

“For now we’ll feed’em this stuff he’s suggested. When we get a chance, though, we’ll get’em some live food. Gotta keep my promises,” he said, then smirked, “and the skills up. Don’t want’em to get lazy.”

“Oh, I’m sure you won’t - they won’t.” Vaako laughed at Riddick’s expression, then sat on one of the rocks and leaned against the wall. “For now, though, why don’t we watch the new pets,” he said, and waited for Riddick to join him.

Alun found them still in the hounds’ room an hour later. He slipped in, stood next to Riddick, and waited to be noticed. “My Lord,” he said, when Riddick looked his way, “Aereon is here.”

“Ah,” Riddick said, not yet moving from his seat. “What do you think of my new pets?” He watched as Five slowly came over to them, not quite growling.

“They are,” he paused, quiet as he let the hound smell him. When she had finished sniffing and walked away, he continued, “quite interesting.”

Riddick laughed, impressed at his lack of fear with the hounds. “Well,” he said, standing up, “let’s not keep Breezy waiting.” He left the room, Vaako and Alun right behind, and Five slowly following.

They entered the meeting room to see Aereon already seated at the table. She greeted the men with a nod, then watched the hellhound as she entered behind Riddick. “You only brought back one?”

“Nah,” he answered, “brought back six. The others are in their room. This is Five.” He looked from Five to Aereon, “Five, this is Breezy. She’s okay – most of the time.”

Aereon ignored his taunting. “Well gentlemen,” she looked at Vaako and Alun, “is there a purpose for this meeting?” She looked back at Riddick, “or was it just to show off your new pets?”

Riddick scratched Five behind the ears, “she’s a little testy when you meet her. When you get to know her, though, she’s still testy.”

He sat at the table, next to Vaako, and across from Aereon. “I do have a question for you, which might lead to a little field trip for you.”

“Trying to get rid of me already?” She asked, and then quickly corrected herself, “of course, if you had wanted me gone, I’d already be gone. Isn’t that what you’d say?” She smirked at Riddick.

Vaako cleared his throat, hoping it would get the two back on track.

Riddick nodded briefly at Vaako, then turned back to Aereon. “I’m looking for a planet we could live on. Some uninhabited system somewhere.”

“We?” Aereon asked.

“We,” he repeated, “as in the Necros. All of ‘em.”

“You’re sure that the Underverse is going to have been a lie.” Vaako said.

“Not positive. But,” he paused, the continued, “I wanna make sure we have somewhere to go when I’m done there. We can’t just wander around, and I’m not going to start invading planets.” Riddick smirked, “Although, maybe if I get bored.”

Vaako nodded, quietly thinking. After a minute, he finally looked from Riddick to Aereon, and said, “it needs to have an area that’s easily defensible, but with a flat section close by to land the basilica and most of the other ships.” He looked to Riddick, “we’ll keep at least two in orbit at all times.”

“That’s what I was thinking.”

“Good.”

Aereon started typing on her data device, quickly reading and scrolling through different areas. “There are a few systems which come to mind. They are far from most inhabited planets, but are still habitable and have a fairly pleasant climate. Of course, this data is out of date, so I suppose I will be taking you up on that offer of a field trip.”

“Good. Now here’s another question,” he turned to Vaako, “can she get around to these systems and back to the armada by the time we reach the Underverse?”

Vaako reached for Aereon’s data device, and did some quick calculations. “It will be close, but she can make it.”

“Perfect. You can leave now, then. The ship should be ready to go back out, and I’m sure Vaako has a pilot in mind.”

Nodding his agreement, Vaako wrote a message on his data device, and sent it. “Ready to go.”

Aereon stood, and once again nodded to the men, “I shall see you in a few weeks, then. I’d say keep out of trouble, but I know you too well.” She smirked, then left.

Riddick laughed, knowing that she meant him and not being the least bit repentant.

“So,” Riddick said, turning to Vaako. “Whatever shall we do with all the time we have until we get to the Underverse?”

“We could,” Vaako started, voice low, “get all hot and sweaty and worked up, rolling around.”

“You wanna spar too, eh?” Riddick asked, smirking.

“Exactly. Let’s go.” Vaako stood up, and made his way to the hallway door. “Come on, Lord Marshall, you’re getting a little slow.”

“Slow?” Riddick asked, growling. He got up slowly, then quickly pounced on Vaako. “Let’s get moving, so I can show you how slow I really am.”

They both laughed, leaving for the sparring room. Five followed behind, a bit confused at her men’s antics, but determined to stay with them, anyway.

Over the next few weeks as the armada made its way to the Underverse, Riddick and Vaako trained with each other and the other commanders, and watched as the soldiers were trained in the new fighting techniques. They noted that as they got more confident in their skills, the general mood of the barracks became more positive, even though they were reacquiring their emotions – the repurification chambers having been shut down completely.

Riddick also spent time training the hounds. He made sure they were able to roam the hallways without snacking on hapless Necromongers who might be nearby. In the rooms, though, they remained aggressive against all but a chosen few; as evidenced by one poor substitute food server who was chased out before he could even step foot inside. They never did growl at any of the Necromongers that had been identified as possibly Furyan, though, no matter where the hounds encountered them.

Aereon sent occasional reports, which led to conversation about planets, the possibility of settling down, and the future of the Necromongers. Usually just Riddick and Vaako, but occasionally Lady Grey would be invited to join in the conversation. These conversations usually involved idle speculation about the Underverse, and what would happen if their way turned out to be built on something that wasn’t real. Vaako felt confident the soldiers were getting to a place where it wouldn’t affect them as much. Lady Grey pointed out that it could be a problem for everyone else, especially those who were the most idle. At that point Riddick made sure that those of the Lords and Ladies who didn’t have significant occupations were kept under surveillance; better to start now, and get more information than wait until things were already happening.

Finally they neared the system where the gate was situated, and the armada slowed. The uninhabited system was in the far reaches of the mapped universe, so it was rarely visited. The unlucky few that did come across it had no reason to stay; most of the planets were uninhabitable, with only one being barely so.

This one planet – known only as Gate, and that only to the Necromongers – was small, with constant high winds and seas. The only landmass was rocky, and held the lone structure.

This was a formidable construction, built of metal and heavy stone, made to withstand the test of time and weather. It also had an active automatic defense system that attacked any ship without the right codes. Once those had been given, lights were activated for a small landing area adjacent to the building.

“The codes,” Vaako explained, as he, Riddick, Aereon, and Lady Grey sat at the meeting table, “for the landing pad are available to all Necromonger pilots and navigators. The outer door is opened by a different code available to techs and mechanics; they provide intermittent maintenance. The inner door code is known only to the Lord Marshall and First Among Commanders. Finally, the key that activates the gate is in the possession of the Lord Marshall.”

“What key?” Riddick asked.

Vaako nodded at a drawer in a back corner of the room. “It’s triangular, green, transparent, and about the size of your palm.”

Riddick went to the drawer, and looked through the items. Besides the key, there were other things that he couldn’t quite identify, but was sure Vaako could if he asked. Taking the key out, he returned to the table, and set it down in front of Vaako. “That it?”

Vaako picked it up, and watched as the light shined off the various edges of the key. “That’s what’s described in the file.” He pointed to the relevant area on Riddick’s data device.

Riddick read the section, then accepted the key from Vaako. “Okay then, we’ll go down tomorrow.”

He and Vaako stayed seated as Aereon and Lady Grey left the room. When they were alone, Vaako turned to him, “I’ve been reading what files I can find on the trips Lord Marshalls have taken through the gate. They have all returned within a few minutes stating they had spent several hours on the other side.”

“Time runs differently in the Underverse.”

Vaako nodded his agreement.

“But no mention of what they saw on the other side except for what they put in your heads.” Riddick frowned at the thought.

“All they ever say is that it’s paradise.”

“Whatever,” Riddick said. “I don’t trust the rest of them any more than I would Zhylaw.”

They sat in silence for a few minutes, thinking about the next day. Then Riddick got up, “let’s forget about this for now.” He waited for Vaako to join him, and then walked to the inner door. “We have more important things to worry about,” he said as they entered their room. He reached down to pat the heads of the hounds that came up to him, and saw Vaako do the same. “We have to figure out how to tell the hounds that they have to stay up here.”

Vaako laughed. “Let’s let Alun worry about that. He’s going to be taking care of them while we’re gone.”

“Good point,” Riddick conceded. “In that case, let’s get some sleep.” He sidled up to Vaako, and wrapped his arms around him, caressing his back. “I’m really,” he kissed Vaako, “tired,” he said against his lips.

The next day Riddick, Vaako, Aereon, and Lady Grey met at the ship. Vaako quickly made his way in and seated himself at the pilot’s seat. Riddick waited as the ladies sat in some rear seats, then took the second pilots chair. “So you’re drivin’, huh?”

“The smaller the numbers the better.” Vaako replied. He looked at Riddick, then admitted, “and I prefer to be in control as much as possible.”

Riddick laughed. “Well take us out, then.”

Vaako checked the systems, and started the ship up. He maneuvered them out of the docking bay, and away from the armada. They flew for a few minutes in space before moving through the thin atmosphere of the planet. The approach to the landing pad was smooth, and Vaako set them down with the barest of bumps. He checked the instruments, shut the ship down, and turned to the other occupants. “Ready to go. The air is thin here, so we should get to the first door fairly quickly.”

They all exited the ship and headed to the door, looking around as they did so. The planet was as rough as described, with nothing but rock in all directions. The only interesting sight was the sky above; the thin atmosphere allowed an almost unobstructed view of the stars.

At the first door, Lady Grey put in the code and watched as the door slid quietly open. She waited for the others to enter, then pressed the close button on the other side.

The area they were in was large enough for ten people to comfortably be in. The décor was the usual Necromonger black, but there was no decoration – only benches against each wall.

“Necro waiting room. Interesting,” Riddick muttered as he looked around. Seeing the next door offset to the right, he moved over to it, and waited for Vaako for put in the code.

As the door opened, they all looked inside. The inner room was quite large, easily five times the size of the one they were in. The ceiling was tall enough to enclose what looked like a fifteen-foot high circular ring made out of what appeared to be metal. Next to it was a small console of the same material. The walls and ceiling were made of the same smooth material as the rest of the building. The floor, however, was the same rough rock of the rest of the planet; in fact the building had been made to enclose the gate as it sat on the planet’s surface.

Riddick stepped inside, “let’s get this over with.” He looked back at the others. “You guys gonna stay in here, or wait out there?” He watched as they all came in. “That’s what I thought.”

He walked up to the console, and touched its smooth surface. The only break in it was a hole in the center the same shape as the key. He retrieved the key from his pocket, and held it over the opening.

“The instructions said to stand behind the gate. I’m guessing that means anyone who isn’t actually using the key.” He looked at the three, and pointed to the other side of the room. “That looks like behind to me.” When they didn’t immediately move, he growled, “go.”

They slowly made their way over the uneven floor to the wall on the other side.

“Good,” he muttered. “Here it goes.” He slotted the key into the hole, and watched as it lit up briefly. Suddenly lights on the gate started to flash in quick succession, then a giant barely visible force rushed out of the gate reaching almost to the wall where his companions had previously been standing. “So that’s why you have to stand behind. Huh.”

He looked at the now quiet gate, which had developed a sort of rippling effect in the center. Briefly looking up at Vaako, he said, “be back,” and stepped through.

The gate’s rippling stopped, and all was back to normal except for the key glowing green once again. And the three companions were alone.

Riddick stepped through the gate into a vast wasteland. The gate itself was on a small dais, but that was the only structure in sight. The ground was rough rock, black and jagged; it reminded him of crematoria. Pale light filtered down from a sunless sky filled with grey and black smoke. The stench of rot and blood filled the air. Far away he could hear the sounds of fighting. “Welcome to Underverse,” he muttered to himself.

“That’s what the Necromongers call it.”

Riddick turned to face the old man that was standing by the gate console. He knew the man hadn’t been there when he entered. He stayed back, evaluating the old man – he just wasn’t quite what he seemed.

“I’m not one. A Necromonger, that is,” the old man stated.

“You don’t say,” Riddick replied. “So, who are you, and what’s the deal with this place?”

“Patience, Riddick, all will be revealed in time,” the man said, moving a little closer.

Low on patience, and getting angry, Riddick stood his ground, and pulled out his knives. “I don’t do patience.”

“That’s not quite what I’ve heard.” He tilted his head briefly, then said, “you want to know how I know who you are. No, I’m not in your head. Not yet anyway.” He held up a hand as Riddick took a menacing step. “When your Lord Zhylaw died, he came here, and I knew his mind. Happens with every one of them, I’m afraid; makes for a full mind. Luckily I can suppress most of it, the unimportant things.” Looking up suddenly, he added, “but you don’t care about that, you want to know why you’re here.”

“Yeah.”

“Well, follow me, then. We can talk on the way.” The old man started walking, waving over his shoulder for Riddick to follow.

Riddick took a second to consider his options, then set out after the man. He quickly caught up, even though the old man was going surprisingly fast over the rough terrain.

“We are in what your people call the Underverse. My people used to call it something, but it’s been so long that I don’t remember. To me it is just home.” He spread his hands out, “I know it doesn’t look like much, but...” Dropping his hands back to his sides, he continued, “And I am simply called the Gatekeeper. I meet whoever comes through the gate. For the longest time it has only been Necromongers.”

“How many?”

“Only your Lord Marshalls come through the gate. The others just appear,” he added.

“The others,” Riddick asked, stopping to look at the gatekeeper.

“There are many Necromongers here. Who do you think fights the battles?” He tilted his head briefly, looking at Riddick, then continued on. “We’re almost there.”

Frustrated with the lack of actual answers, but curious enough not to just kill the old man, Riddick continued to follow.

After just a few minutes more they stopped. They were at the edge of a cliff with a plain stretching out below them. On the plain thousands of figures fought continuously, some appearing to be getting up after falling. Among the fighting throngs were beasts almost the same size as the men, biting, snarling, and clawing at those who opposed them. The clash of weapons and bodies were loud, even at the distance they were at.

“They never stop. Can’t, actually. Locked in battle until one force wins. Of course, no one ever actually dies for long, and any new ones coming in seem to be placed randomly. Doesn’t help that there are so many sides, and they’re incapable of working together. But someday, maybe one who is strong or smart enough will manage to win.”

“How many sides are there?” Riddick asked, unimpressed by the fighting down below.

“One for each Lord Marshall. Well, one for each who asked for it.”

“Asked to be a part of that?” Riddick pointed at the battle. “Constantly fighting a losing battle?”

“Not losing,” he paused at Riddick’s growl, “it’s just not winning. Besides, they all saw the same thing you did. They just thought they’d win. Get enough people…”

“Yeah, how do they ‘show up’?”

“They were taught to seek the Underverse. That is what they do when they die.”

“So if they’re not out there killing people and destroying planets with delusions of grandeur, they don’t come here?”

The gatekeeper shrugged. “All I know is that I never saw any other Necromongers here until after the first Lord Marshall came through.”

Riddick looked back down at the fighting on the plain, then turned back toward the gate. “I’ve seen enough.”

The gatekeeper walked after him as they made their way over the uneven terrain back to the gate. When they arrived he stopped at the console and faced Riddick. “Before I send you home, you have the same choice the others did.”

“Yeah, what’s that?” Riddick asked.

“If you want to try to rule the Underverse, I can give you unimaginable power; you can gain millions more converts to aid in your fight when you arrive here.”

Riddick shook his head, unimpressed.

“Of course, if you choose that, you will exit the other side what you call half-dead - mostly unable to smell, touch, feel emotions.”

“Or you can walk through the gate without extra powers or their consequences,” he offered, and then waited for Riddick to choose.

Riddick shook his head, and pointed at the console. “Just hit the button. I want no part of this crap.”

The gatekeeper laughed delightedly. “Oh, it’s been so long since I’ve heard such words. Thousands of years,” he finished quietly.

“Now,” Riddick growled. He watched as the gatekeeper reached out to the top of the console.

“By all means, Riddick. You may go.” He pressed the central button, and watched as the gate activated, then settled to the usual shimmering wall. As Riddick walked through the gate, he added, “and may you enjoy the gifts you receive.”

Riddick walked through the gate to find the room much as he had left it. Not seeing his companions right away, he turned to see them still standing behind the gate, faint looks of relief on their features. “You guys wait long?”

“It’s been two hours,” Vaako said quietly.

“Hmm,” Riddick mused, “I wonder if it had to do with my choice.”

“My Lord?” Lady Grey asked.

“Nothin’.” He waved her off. “We can chat when we get back.”

He pulled the key from the console, and watched as the gate and console both darkened. “Odd place. Odd man, or not man.” Riddick turned, quickly realizing he had made it to the door way too quickly. “Crazy, devious old man.” He ran his hand down the wall beside the door, then looked at his fingers as he rubbed them against his thumb. “And not dead.”

Vaako walked up to Riddick, and quietly studied him. “Not dead?”

Riddick shook his head, and then laughed. “It’s an interesting story.”

They made it back to the ship, and gathered in Riddick’s meeting room. As the others were sitting down, Riddick went through to his private rooms. He stopped Vaako from following with a quick, “I’ll be back.”

He went through, and was immediately greeted by the hounds. Leaning down, Riddick patted Five’s head, and then scratched behind her ears. “I’m sorry you couldn’t come. Next time, okay?”

Five nudged him.

Laughing, Riddick patted her again, then stood back up. “Come on, we’ve got a meeting to sit through.”

Five growled, and sat.

Riddick shook his head. “If I gotta sit through it, you gotta sit through it.” He turned to the door, and patted his leg, waited until she was beside him, then went through.

He walked in to find Lady Grey, Aereon, and Vaako already seated, with drinks and food in front of them. At his usual chair was his meal, waiting for him. He looked to Alun, who was standing near Vaako. “The hounds were okay?”

“They did well, Riddick. Although Five was not happy when she realized she had been left behind.”

Riddick laughed. “No, she already let me know.”

He sat down, and looked to his companions. “So, let me just tell you that Underverse is no one’s idea of paradise. Except perhaps the crazy idiots who were Lord Marshall before me.”

“What did you see?” Lady Grey asked, leaning forward.

“First of all, there was this old man that met me on the other side of the gate,” Riddick started.

“A Necromonger?” Lady Grey broke in, asking.

“Hold on,” Riddick held up a hand, waiting until she sat back to start again. “No, he looked kind of human,” he shrugged. “Showed me around the place. Ugly; kind of looked like the planet itself, except darker, and smelled more.

And, more importantly, there were a bunch of Necromongers there.”

“A bunch?” Vaako asked with a raised eyebrow.

Riddick smirked. “More than I’ve ever seen in one place; maybe a million or more. And all fighting against each other with the previous Lord Marshalls leading the charge against each other…from the back, of course.”

“So pretty much every Necromonger who has died has already made it to the Underverse.” Lady Grey looked at Riddick, “but how you describe it is so far from what we see during purification.”

“Perhaps,” Aereon spoke up. “What do you actually see?”

Vaako looked at Lady Grey for a moment, thinking. “I saw…felt pain, struggle, then happiness, but never actually saw anything. I think we just assumed it was a paradise.”

“Because Zhylaw thought that once he won the fight paradise would be controlling millions of fighters.” Lady Grey said, sitting back. “He got us all.”

“What now?” Lady Grey asked, looking around at her companions.

“That must be where I come in,” Aereon answered, pulling her data device toward herself, and pressing a few buttons. On the wall screen behind her shown a picture of a planet, equally blue and green. “This is a planet in the Veran system. As you can see, it is fifty percent water. The land is mostly habitable, with only small areas at the poles that are too cold. There are some small animals that live on it, but otherwise it – along with the other planets in the system – is uninhabited.”

She changed the picture to a slightly larger planet. “Planet number two is in the Soltus system. Also uninhabited, although it has some larger predators as well as small animals. Water covers only twenty five percent of the surface of this planet. The other seventy five is two large continents, each with some portion of desert. The colder polar areas are only covered by water.”

“How close are the nearest inhabited areas?” Vaako asked.

Riddick leaned forward. “Far enough away that it would be a pain in the ass for them to come looking for us. And neither of them are close to any regular shipping lanes. No accidental landings.”

“If we were all on the ground, there would still be a risk.” Vaako offered. “We should keep at least one ship in orbit, maybe two.”

“It will mark a huge change in the Necromonger way of life,” Aereon said. “Not all will survive it.”

“Although since there have been no purifications in the last month, many Necromongers are becoming less…” Lady Grey paused.

“Crazy?” Riddick supplied.

“Zealous,” she insisted.

“It’ll help that we have a plan. A new home,” Vaako said, and looked at Riddick.

“That we do.” Riddick pulled Aereon’s data device over, and highlighted the planet in the Soltus system.

Later that night, after a lengthy planning session, Riddick and Vaako were finally alone. They lay in bed, Riddick on his back, with Vaako lying against him, his arm across Riddick’s chest.

“So, really not dead,” Vaako mumbled, and kissed the chest below him.

“Nope,” Riddick answered, caressing Vaako’s naked back. “Right before I left, he offered me power in exchange for being half dead. Think he was surprised when I wanted nothing to do with it. I guess mine was the right answer because when I got back, I could feel it.” He kissed Vaako’s soft black hair, “and I can feel you, too.”

Vaako leaned his head back, and caught Riddick’s lips. “I’m glad. I like you just the way you are.” He kissed Riddick again, running his fingers down Riddick’s chest to tease along the muscled abdomen.

Riddick rolled over onto Vaako. He rose up on his hands, and looked down into Vaako’s eyes. “Damn right,” he said with a grin, and then leaned down for a kiss.

The next morning Riddick and Vaako made their way to the main purification chamber, a few of the hounds padding after them. The new Purifier that Riddick had previously picked was waiting for them. “Good morning, Lord Riddick.”

Riddick growled, “not even gonna bother correcting him right now.” He walked over to examine the machine. “So, how’s this work?”

The Purifier picked up what looked like a set of headphones, and handed them to Riddick. “Quite easily, actually. You put these on, and then open up the memories you want transferred.”

“And it’ll transfer exactly how I want it?”

“You can check it afterward to be sure, L- Riddick.”

“Good.” He put the device on his head, watched as the Purifier turned on the device, and then closed his eyes. A minute later he opened them back up, and turned to Vaako with a smile. “That was kinda fun.”

Riddick looked to the Purifier, “I wanna check it.” After the settings were changed, he closed his eyes briefly. He took off the device, and gave it back to the purifier. “Perfect. Get started.

A week later every Necromonger had been through the purification. In order to keep things calm but not emotionless they had had the purifiers run each one long enough to take some emotion, but not so long that they were emotionless. There had been no incidents as of yet, but Riddick and his advisors were prepared.

“The soldiers all appear to be accepting the change. I think the additional training you began in hand to hand prior to this started making them more comfortable with change. We are, of course, still carefully watching for any signs of trouble.”

Riddick nodded at Vaako, then turned to Lady Grey. “How’s it going with the others?”

“The main problem with the upper class is not knowing where they will fit in in the new society. Most are fine with waiting for the moment, but there are some that are getting vocal about their displeasure.”

“How vocal?” Riddick asked.

“Not enough to cause trouble as of yet. They are being closely watched, and you’ll be notified immediately when they do. I think there are one or two who will need to be taken care of, and the others will fall into line after that.

“I was wondering, Riddick, what will their place be?”

“Nowhere,” Riddick mumbled.

Aereon sighed, and shook her head at him. “They’re not as worthless as you think, Riddick. You’ll need geologists, architects, builders, biologists, farmers, and engineers at the least. I know you’ll find some of those among the soldiers. I have found, however, that many of the upper class have very useful skills.”

“Huh,” he replied, sitting back in his chair. He sighed, then turned to Vaako. “We’ll need to have the lower commanders sort through their ranks, see if they have anyone who has skills we need.”

“Yes,” Vaako nodded, “then we’ll put the rest in cryo until we’re ready for them.”

“Exactly.”

“Good. Aereon, you have the details on the planet we chose?”

“I do,” She activated the holo in the middle of the table, which showed the planet in the Soltus system slowly spinning in front of them.

Everyone quietly studied the planet. It had several different climate areas; from tropical to what was most likely tundra that melded seamlessly with the frozen ocean at the poles. There were great forests that ended at vast grasslands. Mountains soared, and valleys were deep grooves in the land. The ocean was a deep blue, sparkling in the sun.

Aereon stopped the movement and pointed to a place on the globe. “This seems to be the area most likely to be a good home. The valleys would accommodate the ships, and the valley walls would provide protection for buildings. Soil on the plains above should be fertile enough for food production.

“The indigenous animals are of the smaller variety. They may be good for meat occasionally, but not as a steady supply. Larger animals are present in another section of the planet. Teams could fly there for hunting if their meat proves edible.”

Riddick shifted. “Good. Vaako and Lady Grey can make up the groups from the likely candidates. Aereon and I will check in on them once in a while.”

He stood, “now, Vaako and I need some time alone.” Riddick waited until the women left, and then wrapped his arms around the other man. “mmm…you smell so good.”

Vaako ran his hands down Riddick’s muscular back to his buttocks, and pulled him closer. He ground their hips together, and moaned. “It’s been too long.”

Riddick chuckled, “since last night?” He started walking them toward their bedroom.

“Yes,” Vaako hissed, as Riddick licked up the side of his neck. He managed to fumble open the door and pull them through.

They kissed deeply, working together to remove their clothes. Finally, stumbling over discarded clothes, and a hellhound, they made it to the bed.

 

The next morning they sat at their table, eating breakfast. Alun stood by the door, awaiting any commands, but otherwise they were alone with the hellhounds.

“So where are we on identifying the Furyans?”

“Not very far along,” Vaako answered, pulling his data pad toward him. “I’ve only been able to get through about five percent of the soldiers. We have, however, gotten through over half of everyone else.”

“That’s too bad. We have time, though.” He looked over at Vaako’s pad, “any of the non desirables on there?”

Vaako rolled his eyes at Riddick’s question, then consulted his pad. “No. In fact, all the ones we’ve found so far have been very loyal.” He looked up at Riddick, “I would guess there’s some sort of inborn knowledge that lets them recognize you as their leader.”

Riddick smirked, “the chick did say I was the alpha Furyan.”

“She said an alpha Furyan, but yes –“ he cut off as there was an urgent knock on the door.

They waited while Alun talked briefly with the person on the other side, and then walked quickly to their table.

“Lady Grey has reported that the suspects are planning to move very soon. She and Aereon are waiting in the other room.”

They looked at each other, then got up and followed Alun to the conference room. Lady Grey and Aereon were already seated at the table talking amongst themselves, but rose when Riddick and Vaako entered.

“Sit,” Riddick said as he and Vaako sat in their usual places. “So what’s the deal?”

“Lords Heyn and Randall, Lady Brizel, along with at least twenty soldiers plan to ambush you in the main hallway this morning.”

“Not a bad place,” Riddick said, pulling up the schematic on his data device. “It’s overlooked by a couple balconies, and has several escape routes.”

“If they put snipers here, here, and here,” Vaako pointed out the areas, “as well as having a two sided attack, at least one group will miss the hellhounds, even if Riddick has them all with him.”

“You do know they’d have to remove you as well, Lord Vaako,” Aereon looked at him.

“Cowards,” he growled, “hiding in the shadows, attacking without honor.”

“So I will walk in this morning with two of the hellhounds.” Riddick held his hand up as Vaako started to speak, “I want you and your best men at these points.” He pointed to several areas on the data device. “I trust you to make sure all the snipers are taken out. The guys on the bottom level with me can help me if I need it. Okay?”

“Right. Thirty minutes?” At Riddick’s nod, Vaako pulled out his communicator and contacted his next in command.

As Vaako did that, Riddick turned to the women. “We need to make sure we get everyone involved. Catching these guys may shake up some of the other malcontents, so I want you two to be on the lookout for that.”

Lady Grey smirked darkly, “no problem.”

Riddick laughed, and then turned to Vaako. “Ready?”

“They’ll be in place and hidden in the next few minutes.”

“Great.” He reached down and pet Five, who was sitting on the floor next to him, “ready to go on a hunt?”

 

 

The main hallway was less busy than it usually was this time of day, which lead Riddick to wonder exactly how stupid the conspirators were. There were a few of the usual faces that quickly backed against the wall when they saw their Lord Marshall and his hellhounds approaching. He didn’t smell any more fear than usual on them, so he walked by, mentally marking them as still living for today.

Halfway through the hall, a Necro he didn’t recognize stepped in front of him. Riddick stopped and stared, waiting to see what the other man would do.

“Not many in your entourage this morning, Lord Riddick.”

“I though they could use a break. Chasing disobedient Necromongers is a hard job for them. Not that they don’t get a snack at the end.” He smirked and stroked Five on the head.

The other man paled somewhat, then looked to the side and smiled. “Too bad for them they’re about to lose a master.” He waved the soldiers in from the side hallway. “We don’t like where you are leading the Necromongers – into obscurity, with no power. Once we’re done this morning, we will lead our people back into glory.”

Riddick rolled his eyes. As he did so he saw Vaako and his team quietly take care of their targets. He looked back at the man in front of him and chuckled. “You waitin’ for somethin’? Maybe got some other friends somewhere else?”

“There’s nothing wrong,” he said, trying to be firm, and almost succeeding. “We will end your rule, and no one is around to save you.” He motioned the soldiers forward, and watched as they did so slowly.

“It seems you didn’t pay attention to recent events.” Riddick laughed at the man’s confusion, and then pulled out his knives. He spun around, and started slicing and slashing so quickly no one could follow. Within seconds all twenty soldiers were dead, and Riddick was holding the man by the throat. “I did go to the Underverse.”

He threw the man on the floor, and tapped Five on the head. “He’s all yours.”

 

 

Two weeks later Riddick and Vaako sat side by side on the thrones in the main hall. Aereon and Lady Grey stood to each side between the hellhounds and the thrones. Hundreds of Necromongers stood in the throne room facing a large screen that had been set up earlier in the day. Throughout the Necromonger fleet Necromongers were congregating in large halls facing similar screens. They were waiting for a glimpse of the next great step in Necromonger society.

Riddick leaned toward Vaako, and whispered, “you sure I have to be the one to do this?”

Vaako sighed, and turned to Riddick. “Of course you have to do it. I’m sure you remember the discussion with Aereon and Lady Grey.”

“I do. It’s just not as fun as the purification thing.”

“No,” Vaako agreed, “it’s not as fun as the purification thing.”

Riddick chuckled at the unexpected response. “Glad we agree.”

Lady Grey stepped closer to them and quietly spoke. “They’re ready.”

“Gotcha,” Riddick acknowledged, and resettled himself on his throne. He nodded to the tech.

The screen suddenly glowed with a large blue and brown planet in a star field. The view slowly got closer to the planet until more details could be seen – plains, mountains, rivers, and valleys.

“Necromongers,” Riddick called, and waited until all eyes were again on him. “Welcome home.”


End file.
